


Flash Fiction

by JacklesandHydelecki



Category: Supernatural RPF
Genre: BDSM, Cockles, Cockles Week, Multi, Stalking, Triggers, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-11-19
Updated: 2016-04-19
Packaged: 2018-05-02 07:37:40
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 15,755
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5240057
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JacklesandHydelecki/pseuds/JacklesandHydelecki
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When a nosy paparazzo named Jeremy snaps some illicit pictures of Jensen and Misha, he thinks his career is made. His girlfriend Allie thinks otherwise, and the fallout of their relationship pulls Jensen and Misha into a tumultuous tale of obsession, sex, and intrigue.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

The shutter clicked rapidly, the loud sound echoing in the photographer’s ears making him hunch his shoulders as if waiting for an unseen blow. His eyes shifted downward, scanning the street below him for movement. A luxury-class sedan turned off the boulevard at the bottom of the hill and slowly started to make its way up the lane. The photographer withdrew his telephoto lens from the branch where it was peeking out of the dense foliage of the oak tree that obscured his hiding place. He watched the silver BMW pass underneath his feet and continue down the block, turning into a palatial estate several houses down from the one he was currently surveilling. He waited a few more seconds, making sure that no other traffic was coming from either direction, then he shifted forward exposing the barrel of the lens once again and he squinted as he looked through the viewing window to focus.  


His view was of a well-manicured garden and pool area, occupied by two men; famous television actors. As he sharpened the focus, two faces came into view. He watched as the strawberry blonde hair of the taller man caught the sunlight. Nearby on the pool deck, his male co-star stripped off a white t-shirt to reveal the lean, tan muscles of a runner’s body. The photographer snapped a few rapid fire candids as the other man watched his friend remove his layers. He grinned to himself, these photos would sell well just for the look on the blonde’s face, alone. Then, to his delight the darker haired man continued to remove his clothing, rapidly stripping down to nothing. His body was tan all over, an indication that this was not the first time he’d been completely nude in the summer sun. His blonde co-star licked his lips appreciatively and watched as his blue-eyed friend dove gracefully into the pool. The photographer caught each frame of these actions with barely a millisecond between each snap. The blonde watched as his friend surfaced and tossed his head to clear the wet hair from his eyes. The swimmer indicated that he should join him in the pool and the blonde playfully shook his head. Then he seemed to reconsider, stripping off his grey Henley to reveal a thick, toned torso. His muscles rippled across broad shoulders as his arms worked the sleeves off the ends of his hands causing firm pecs to rise and fall. He had slight love handles and a little paunch around his belly button; far from making him unappealing the softened edges actually accentuated his angled features and green eyes. If he was into that sort of thing, he would totally find this guy attractive. But it didn’t matter what he thought, it only mattered that millions of these men’s’ fans would soon be seeing them intimately engaged in skinny dipping. The photographer smirked and snapped a few more shots as the blonde kicked off his sandals and reached for the waistband of his basketball shorts.  


Just as the blonde was about to strip off the man in the pool popped back up on the pool deck with a quick, athletic grace. He closed the distance between himself and his co-star with palpable intent. The photographer clicked happily as he caught each step and the look on both, their faces. This was going to be big, he could tell. He’d been watching celebrities for over a decade now, catching them at their most intimate, and he knew sexual tension when he saw it. He could spot arousal from a thousand yards off and capture it with his camera. He’d broken the story when Angelina and Brad cheated on Jennifer Aniston, and he’d seen it coming from a mile away when Kristen Stewart started boning her director. So it was no surprise at all when the brunette man reached for the blonde, his hands still grasping at the elastic of his waistband, and brought their full mouths together for a passionate kiss. He watched through his lens as the brunette’s exposed cock began to fill and stand full and proud as his tongue worked its way into his lover’s mouth. For that was certainly what these two were, the blonde had shifted his hands to a familiar and comfortable position on his lover’s lower back, gently caressing lower and kneading his buttocks as he pulled the lithe dark haired man closer, effectively hiding his erection as he pressed it against the material of his own shorts.  


This was getting good quickly, the camera was almost about to overheat from the intensity of the scene it was capturing. These photos were going to make him millions. The two men broke apart both looking back toward the doorway that led into the main house. In the doorway appeared a tall, curly-haired, brunette female who was wearing glasses and not much else. The blue-eyed man’s wife, the photog remembered reading about her somewhere. She was a professor or something, wrote a book about threesomes, looks like she’d been doing more research if her comfort with her husband’s actions was any indication. She seemed to be intimating that the two men should join her inside, if the photographer was reading her body language correctly. The men were still clasped desperately around each other and the blonde continued to stroke and knead at the dark haired man’s buttocks and thighs as they conversed. The slow grind between them made it appear as if they were dancing in the photos when he reviewed them later. Reluctantly they nodded at the woman in glasses and she disappeared from the doorway, leaving them alone again. They immediately fell back into each other kissing feverishly and the blonde’s hands travelled to the front of the smaller man’s body. His view was obscured because of their position but the photographer was certain that the blonde was currently jacking the brunette off; the flexing of his forearms seemed to be an undeniable clue. Then the photographer actually laughed out loud at his good fortune as he watched the blonde drop to his knees in front of the brunette, unmistakably fellating him even though his face and the other man’s cock was hidden by the brunette’s back side. He continued to snap pictures as the brunette threw his head back and moaned so loudly that the photographer actually heard him despite the distance of almost two hundred yards between himself and his targets. The blonde rose to his feet, licking his lips, his face flushed and his eyes sparkling. Then he kissed the brunette again sweetly before grasping his hand and leading him inside.  


The photographer waited a few more minutes but nothing else interesting happened. Besides, he was eager to get home and edit the photos he’d taken before shopping them around to the tabloids for the highest bidder. He climbed down carefully from his hiding place and walked down the block to where he’d parked his car behind a thick hedge near another estate. He tossed his camera in the backseat and drove off to his apartment in the valley.  


He opened the door to his apartment and found his girlfriend and two of their mutual friends sitting on the couches in the living room. They had been marathoning her favorite show Supernatural for the last week. He chuckled to himself as he watched the blonde he’d spent the afternoon photographing make a pretty model face for the TV camera. He supposed he should be thanking Allie for her obsession, after all he wouldn’t even know who Jensen Ackles and Misha Collins were if it weren’t for her. And he was about to be very, very rich because of them.  


“Hey, Jeremy, how was your day, hon? Get any good snaps?” Allie’s voice stirred him from his reverie and he smiled warmly at her.  


“Yeah, babe, these are front page material. I’m gonna go work on editing them in my studio, you wanna call out for some Thai or pizza or something for dinner?”  


Allie nodded, distracted as something happened on the television. Jeremy slipped quietly away and closed the door to his studio to keep out the noise. He sat down at his desk and removed the SD card from his camera, his hands shaking as he put it in the drive. Immediately he began scrolling through the fifteen hundred images he’d taken that afternoon. Each one was better than the last. The focus was laser sharp, no mistaking who these guys were. No mistaking the angle of Misha’s hips or the way Jensen licked his lips. No mistaking the length of Misha’s cock or the depth of Jensen’s tongue in his throat. Jesus, this was going to go viral, the international press would probably pick up these photos. He did a quick Google search and found pictures of Misha’s wife, Vicki. He matched her face with the photos of her standing naked in the doorway. He zoomed in on the image and almost whooped with glee as he realized that in shadow behind the glass of the screen door you could also make out the form and face of Jensen’s wife Danneel. She stood behind Vicki so he hadn’t seen her at first, but she was definitely there and wearing a macramé cover up that barely disguised her nudity. So he had officially captured a pair of swinging Hollywood stars and their wives en flagrante delicto. He was gonna be famous.  


Jeremy was so intent on sharpening the image of Danneel that he didn’t hear the latch of the studio door. He felt a hand on his shoulder and he let out a little squeal as he rounded on Allie who had crept up behind him.  


“What the hell, Allie!? You scared the shit out of me!” Allie was smirking at her own stealth skills but her grin fell fast when her eyes locked on the screen behind Jeremy.  


“Is that Danneel Ackles?” Allie pushed Jeremy’s chair out of the way rolling him back into the corner and away from the computer table. Before he could scramble out of his chair she was clicking rapidly through the images he’d taken that day, her eyes growing wider and wider as she saw what he’d captured.  


“Oh my god! Jensen is blowing Misha? Danneel and Vicki know about it? Holy shit, Jeremy, you can’t publish these. It will ruin them.” Jeremy felt rage surge up in his blood.  


“What the fuck are you talking about Allie? I’m a photographer; I photograph celebrities in all aspects of their lives. It’s not my fault these two morons decided to get frisky where a camera could catch them. Do you have any idea how much these kind of photos are worth?”  


Allie stood up to her full height crossing her arms over her breasts and staring down at Jeremy with disdain on her face. “You know I don’t like it when you go hunting for candids, and I still don’t like what you did to Angelina and Brad, but this is something else entirely. These two…” She indicated Jensen and Misha on the screen, “are co-stars, publicly heterosexual, and married…with children. This kind of scandal could destroy their marriages. It would hurt their kids. And it might kill the show, putting thousands of people out of work. You can’t use these Jeremy, it’s not right.”  


“Right? These two fags are blowing each other on the side while their wives watch, hell maybe even their kids watch, I don’t know what kind of deviant bullshit they get up to and I don’t care! All I care about is those snaps are going to make me a millionaire, they’ll probably get international press coverage, I could fucking retire on those photos and I’m only 34! Who cares about some dumb show and a couple of pretty boy actors getting a little embarrassed? That’s not my problem.”  


Allie’s jaw dropped in shock as he finished this rant. “Dude, who the fuck ARE you? I thought you were a decent guy! Yeah, you take pictures of famous people for a living, but you’ve never willingly destroyed people for money. That is some Machiavellian bullshit. These men are people! They have feelings! And it’s not like they were boning in the middle of Hollywood Boulevard, you probably climbed up into a tree or onto some rooftop and used a lens that could take high res images from ten football fields away to get these! You invaded THEIR privacy and now you want to use it against them! That is so fucked up, Jeremy!”  


“THEIR PRIVACY?! They’re celebrities Allie! These people make millions of dollars a year to look pretty on camera! They make more money than most people make in a lifetime just for being naturally gifted with good genes! They deserve everything they get. They can’t have it both ways, if they wanted to have privacy they wouldn’t have come to Hollywood to make money off all the masses of unfamous people in the world. Part of the deal is that we get to have access to them and their lives to live vicariously through. You’re telling me the bajillion fangirls out there wouldn’t drop panties and dollars to get their hands on these photos? That I shouldn’t give them their every fantasy come true? I mean it’s not just about the money; this is a public service I’m doing here. All those sexually frustrated fans with their ‘will they or won’t they?’ blogs and speculations about Destiel. And all the while these two were going at it like rabbits! They deserve to know they were right!”  


Allie had gone from shocked to angry, her brows furrowed and her teeth grinding. “Don’t you try to come off as the selfless one here; this is not your decision to make. If these two wanted everyone to know about their relationship, they would have had their publicists make a press release or something! This is too personal, Jeremy. What if you had some deep dark secret and…” Allie paused, her eyes drifting off to the right as she remembered a night not too long ago when she and Jeremy had gotten very kinky and he’d demanded she make photographic evidence of his submission, so he could jerk off to it later, while she watched. Jeremy seemed to remember it too because his face suddenly flushed with embarrassment and he quickly began to pack peddle as Allie strode forward a look of determination and dominance on her face.  


“Here’s what you’re going to do Jeremy, you are going to give me that SD card. You are going to delete these images off of your hard drive and you are going to forget you ever heard the names Jensen Ackles and Misha Collins or the minute you try to sell these photos I am going to send the pictures of you trussed up like a gimp and whimpering like a bitch to every single person on your contact list.”  


Jeremy whined under his breath, simultaneously turned on by Allie’s dominance and pissed off by her words. “Shit, you’re serious aren’t you?”  


Allie cocked one eyebrow dismissively, daring him to test her.  


Jeremy sighed. Then he pulled the SD card from his computer and deleted the Photoshop files as she watched. Allie patted him on the head and then whispered, “I’ll make it up to you, I promise. I just bought a new spreader bar…and a vibrating butt plug.” Jeremy looked sullen but his eyes sparkled with arousal. Allie walked out of his studio her hips swaying and humming to herself.  


************** 

Jeremy was back in his tree his telephoto lens trained on the pool area where he’d last captured Jensen and Misha in intimate embrace. This was the third time this week and he hadn’t even caught a glimpse of the pair. He’d watched a sole pool boy come and clean the pool twice and once he’d seen a few shadows that might have been people in the house moving about, but nothing substantive. Allie had hidden the SD card or destroyed it, he wasn’t sure which, but he knew he’d never get it back, so his only option was to try and reproduce the images. Unfortunately the celebrities were not being accommodating. Bastards.  


His stomach rumbled and he sighed as he put his camera away in a case and began to climb down. The second his feet touched the ground he was spun around and thrown against the tree trunk behind him. He winced as a knot of bark dug into his spine. Then he looked up into a pair of incredibly menacing green eyes.  


“I don’t wanna know how you found my house, I don’t care who the fuck you are or what company you work for, in fact, I don’t even want you to speak. All I want is for you to understand that if I ever catch you trying to take photos over my fence again I will NOT be calling the authorities. I WILL, however, be using one of my large collection of firearms to kill you and bury you in the hills where they will never fucking find your worthless ass. Do you understand you slimy piece of shit?”  


Jeremy could barely breathe with Jensen’s forearm pressed against his throat but he managed to nod weakly.  


Jensen huffed angrily pressing a bit deeper into Jeremy’s throat before he released him. Jeremy slumped to the ground shaking as the adrenalin rushed through his system. Jensen made no indication of helping him up instead he stood over him with his arms crossed and a frown on his handsome face.  


“I’m sorry.” Jeremy wheezed. Jensen gave a slight nod in acknowledgement. Jeremy reached over to retrieve his fallen camera case, keeping an eye on the other man as he did so.  


Jeremy stood on shaky legs, suddenly becoming very aware of how much taller and broader Jensen was then himself. He dusted himself off and squared his shoulders. Then, scraping together as much dignity as he could manage given the circumstances, he began to walk to his car. Jensen stepped aside and let him pass, though for a moment Jeremy wasn’t sure he was going to. Jensen watched Jeremy all the way down the block until he ducked into his beat up old Toyota and drove away. He had a feeling Jensen was memorizing his license plate, make, and model; it seemed like something he would do.  


Jeremy pulled over halfway home and checked himself over for bruises. There weren’t any. No lawsuit for him, too bad. Usually when celebrities lose it and assault the paparazzi there was a big settlement that came out of it. Jensen wasn’t so reckless, he’d made sure to scare the shit out of him but leave him unscathed. Smart.  


Now there was only one way he was going to get what he wanted, he had to find that SD card. He ran his hands through his hair and bit his lip nervously. There was a very real possibility that he would lose Allie over this. More like a guarantee given her reaction when she’d found the photos, but he was prepared. He could get a much hotter girlfriend when he was a millionaire after all. One who wouldn’t threaten him unless he wanted her to do so, while wearing leather, preferably.  


Resolved in his action, he turned the key in the ignition and sped home to search the apartment.


	2. Chapter 2

Allie scaled the stairs, her arms full of groceries humming a tune she’d been listening to on the radio when she pulled up. As she walked she mused about how good the last couple weeks had been between her and Jeremy. He was becoming a very well trained submissive and it seemed to be translating to their outside the bedroom relationship as well. She’d expected him to put up more of a fight over the SD card, but he’d acquiesced and dropped the subject after their verbal altercation. Actually, thinking back on it, he gave up too easily. Allie frowned a bit. What had he been up to this week? He hadn’t mentioned any new targets to her, but he’d left every morning with his camera…

Allie would have smacked her forehead if her hands were free, but instead she cursed out loud. She hurried to the door supporting one bag on her hip the other braced against the door as she turned the key in the lock. The door flew open almost dumping one of the grocery bags out of her hands. 

The apartment was in shambles, couch cushions torn open, all of her DVD’s opened and out of their cases. The curtains were pulled down, the carpet pulled up. There were even a few holes in the dry wall as if Jeremy thought she would hide the SD card that thoroughly. She sighed heavily setting the grocery bags on the counter in the kitchen which was in a similar state of ruin. She made her way back into the apartment, unsurprised to discover that Jeremy’s personal items, clothes, DVD’s, toothbrush, computer, were gone. She looked around for a note, checked her phone messages, and email, but no indication of Jeremy’s intentions was left behind. She knew what he’d been looking for and the fact that he wasn’t here when she got home meant that he thought he had found it. Thought being the key word. She knew how devious her boyfriend, well, ex-boyfriend now, she supposed, could be. So she’d taken steps to insure that he would never actually get his hands on that sensitive material again. Honestly, she probably should have just destroyed it, but a dark and desperate part of herself really enjoyed knowing and being able to see evidence of something that had been so speculated about for so long. So she’d kept the SD card. On her. In her wallet. Behind her Visa card. She pulled it out now just to confirm it was still safely in place where she’d put it after scrolling through the pictures a couple of times on her laptop yesterday afternoon. The little blue rectangle slid out easily and she smiled triumphantly as she held it up. 

The SD card that Jeremy was currently in possession of had photos of the two of them on vacation in Malta a year ago. She’d kept it in a cedar jewelry box her mother had given her, the one that was face down on the floor in their bathroom. She gathered it up and returned all her keepsakes to their proper place inside. Then she pulled out her phone again to dial the authorities, the landlord, and a locksmith. It was going to be a long night. 

******************

Two weeks had passed since she came home to the disarray Jeremy’s obsession had wrought. She didn’t believe for one second that he had given up his quest to obtain the SD card but she hadn’t seen him hanging around the apartment or her work, either. She had filed a report with the police about the property damage he’d inflicted on the apartment; Mike, the landlord, assured her that he would be pursued for all repair costs, even if it meant taking him to small claims court. She had a new lock, a reinforced door, and a security system installed within 36 hours of Jeremy leaving the premises. She always had an escort to her car from work at night and she’d bought a 9mm handgun with her last paycheck, just in case. 

It wasn’t really surprising when he showed up on her doorstep. She was prepared for a verbal and physical altercation. Fortunately, he wasn’t really aware of how well prepared she was. The knock came at 11 p.m. She’d just settled down on the couch with a bowl of chocolate chocolate chip and the Netflix menu on the Xbox. She sighed heavily and walked up to look through the peep-hole at her visitor. 

Even through the fish eye lens of the peep-hole Jeremy looked bad. His eyes were bloodshot, hair disheveled, clothes rumpled and soiled. She pressed her forehead against the cool lacquer on her side of the door. She wasn’t going to give him the chance to force his way in, but he wasn’t going to leave unless she talked to him. Heaving a deep breath, she backtracked through the apartment to her bedroom, fetching the gun from under her pillow. She clicked the safety off and checked that it was fully loaded. Then she padded back to the door, her comfy slippers barely making any noise on the thick new carpeting. She eased the window facing the hall open a couple of inches, making sure to keep the gun out of sight but just below the window sill. 

“What do you want Jeremy?” She asked her tone harsh and full of annoyance. 

Jeremy turned his movements sluggish as if he were stoned or otherwise inebriated. 

“You know what. Where is it Allie? It’s all I need. I know you still have it. Thanks to you I need it even more now.” Allie gripped the handle of the 9mm tighter, anger rushing through her system at the unfairness of Jeremy’s words. 

“Thanks to me? You’re the one who went off the deep end and trashed the apartment and all but burned the place to the ground leaving me in the lurch. You got everything you deserved. I hope Mike takes you for everything you’re worth, you psycho.” 

Jeremy’s eyes shone with a dark, mad light and he quickly closed the distance between the window and the door. He slammed his hand against the glass of the double pane so hard the wall shook. 

“You’re gonna ruin me you bitch! Give me those pictures!” Allie winced, hoping the window could withstand Jeremy’s assault, but shifting her finger to the trigger, just in case. 

“Not going to happen, Jeremy. You need to leave. Now.” Her tone brooked no argument, but Jeremy was desperate and desperate men do dumb things. He slipped a crow bar out of the sleeve of his jacket, rapidly shifting his weight to a baseball stance as he took aim for the window glass. 

Allie took two steps back to give herself room to lift her arms and she pointed the 9mm at Jeremy’s chest. Jeremy faltered in his swing, eyes going wide. 

“Now.” Allie repeated staring him down. Jeremy stared back at her considering for a moment, then, in the distance sirens began to sound moving closer to the apartment complex. Jeremy looked ashamed, his shoulders slumping in defeat. 

“Fine. But this isn’t over. I’m going to get that SD card. You can’t be home all the time. I will burn this place to the ground to find it. Don’t think I won’t.” Allie shivered involuntarily at the icy tone in Jeremy’s voice. He smirked at that. Seeing her scared made him feel powerful, she realized. That made him even more dangerous. 

He winked at her and then giving her a little wave ran off down the stairs to the parking lot. His junk yard Toyota squealing out of the complex just as the cop cars came roaring in over the speed bumps. 

Allie watched his taillights speed off into the night. She stood at her window watching long after they disappeared, her grip knuckle white on the 9mm, body trembling with fear. 

*************

Allie had gone around and around in her head, trying to come up with solutions to get rid of Jeremy for good. The obvious choice was to move away and not leave a forwarding address, but their apartment was rent controlled and in a fairly decent neighborhood for the Valley, it wouldn’t be easy to find another place on short notice. Additionally, she was now operating on a single income and that limited her ability to come up with the cash for a deposit. So, moving was out. 

She thought about burning the SD card, but even if she told Jeremy that she’d destroyed it and showed him the evidence he wouldn’t believe her. She needed to give it to someone who would keep it and her safe. She could give it to the police, but there was no guarantee its contents wouldn’t somehow leak out to the press. It happened all the time. All this would be for nothing if the photos got published anyway. 

The more she thought about it, the more frustrated and scared she became. Jeremy hadn’t broken any laws, unfortunately. Not yet, anyway. So the police couldn’t arrest him. And even if they did, they couldn’t hold him. She could get a restraining order, but those were notoriously unreliable and again, only temporarily took the problem away, as he wouldn’t be held for very long on a simple trespassing charge. 

Attempting to clear her head she sat down and began mindlessly flicking through the Netflix queue, her recently watched feed full of sci-fi and fantasy movies and TV shows. Supernatural ran across the scroll and she stopped, looking at the picture of the man whose right to privacy had accidentally turned her world upside down. She stared at Jensen’s eyes on the screen and an idea occurred to her. The man who stood the most to lose if these photographs went public would certainly be invested in keeping them secret. And he most definitely had the money and power to offer her some kind of compensation or security for returning them to his possession. She had never been one to solicit help from strangers, but this situation was untenable. 

A quick Google search led her to his agent’s office downtown, where she arrived the next morning wearing her business casual best. She asked for the agent by name and told the secretary it was a matter of extreme discretion regarding one of her clients. The secretary raised one perfectly manicured eyebrow at Allie’s words but delivered the message as spoken over the intercom. A few minutes later a well-dressed woman in her mid-50’s strode into the lobby and looking to the secretary for confirmation crossed the room with her hand proffered for Allie to shake. 

“Hello, I’m Gayle and you are?” Allie saw the shrewd analysis going on behind the woman’s thick rimmed glasses. 

“Allie. Allie Sherman. Gayle I appreciate you meeting with me like this, I wasn’t sure what else to do. This is an extremely sensitive matter.” 

Gayle continued to stare Allie up and down as if she were examining a specimen under a microscope. “Which of my clients did you say this pertains to?” Suspicion was laced thickly in her tone. Allie noticed over her shoulder two large men wearing suits and ties had entered the lobby their eyes locked on her. 

Allie sighed. She’d thought it might go this way. “Look, I know you must get crazies all the time who pretend a variety of insane things to try and get at the celebrities you represent. I understand the need for caution, but I have something here…” At this she pulled the SD card from her inside breast pocket, “If you just take a moment to take a look at it, you’ll see it’s really important that we have a private conversation, immediately." 

Gayle continued to scrutinize Allie warily, but she took the SD card and then motioned for the secretary to step away from her desk out of the line of sight of her computer screen. Gayle placed the SD card in the tower and brought up the images. 

Allie had to hand it to the woman; she was good at her job. Her eyebrows raised a half inch and her eyes slightly widened as she examined the card’s contents but no other reaction slipped by her mask of professionalism. If someone who didn’t know the contents of the drive watched Gayle’s face for a clue they would never have guessed it by her expression. 

Gayle cleared her throat and then focused her laser like glare at the security guards by the entrance. With a motion of her hand she waved them off and after removing the drive from the PC quickly made her way around the desk and clasped Allie’s upper arm firmly leading her back down a well-furnished hallway to the double doors that led into her office. 

Gayle indicated that Allie should take a seat in one of the low leather chairs facing her massive glass and mahogany desk. 

“Alright, Allie, was it? You have my attention. How did you come across these photographs?” 

Allie swallowed nervously and began to explain. “My boyfriend, er, ex-boyfriend,” she put extra emphasis on the word ‘ex’ to indicate it was not an amicable split, “was a paparazzo. He was the guy who broke the Brangelina scandal a decade ago when he was just out of college. He’d been making money at it for a while and he wasn’t even interested in Jensen until…” Allie folded and unfolded her hands, wiping them against her skirt to try and remove the excess moisture that kept forming. 

“I’m a fan of the show and he saw me watching it and heard about all the fandom stuff. I guess he took an interest. He has this guy he pays at the clerk’s office to slip him celebrities’ property records. So I guess he started staking out Jensen’s house. I didn’t know about any of this, by the way, if I had I would never, I mean I love the show and I respect people’s privacy, I never liked Jeremy’s job, but it was a means to an end and I just kind of looked the other way.” Gayle cleared her throat again. Allie stopped, realizing that she was babbling and getting off topic. 

“Anyway, so he came home a few weeks ago after being out all day on a shoot, he was really excited; barely even spoke to me before he ran back to his studio. I was curious and I wanted to ask him what he wanted for dinner so I sneaked into his editing studio. He was so intent on what he was doing he didn’t even hear me, I thought it was kind of cute, actually…” Gayle raised a single eyebrow this time and Allie quickly got back to the point. 

“Right…so…long story short, I saw what he was doing, who he had taken photos of, and we fought about it. I had some compromising photos of him from a while back so I threatened him and told him that I would send the pics to all his contacts if he didn’t give me that SD card. He gave in and I took it and hid it in my wallet.” Gayle nodded to indicate Allie should continue. 

“For about two weeks it was quiet, too quiet I guess, now that I think about it. He didn’t mention it or ask me about it. It occurred to me that that was strange at the last possible moment before it became obvious that he hadn’t let it go. I came home that day to find our apartment trashed and he was gone. He took another SD card I had from a vacation a while ago, thinking it was the one with the pictures of Jensen on it.” 

Gayle slid a bottle of water across the desk from a refrigerator she kept behind her desk. She nodded gratefully and took a moment to take the top off and take a deep drink. 

“Thanks.” Gayle smiled gently. 

“So I did my due diligence, I called the cops and reported the vandalism, told the landlord about it, changed the locks, installed security…bought a gun.” 

Allie looked up at Gayle from under her lashes, knowing what admitting this fact intimated and she saw Gayle’s eyebrows shoot up that half inch like they had at seeing the photos. “He came back last night, tried to break the window in, threatened to burn the place to the ground if he didn’t get what he wanted.” Gayle reached across table and clasped at Allie’s wet hand sympathetically. 

Allie took a deep breath, now she was at the last bit of the story she was gaining momentum running for the finish line. “I tried to think of some way out of this, but the police can’t keep him from hurting me, not really. Destroying the card would be pointless since he would never believe me and the police can’t be trusted with sensitive material like that. I can’t afford to move and drop off the face of the Earth to get away from him. And I don’t know what to do. I’m scared. He’s going to hurt me or someone else and I don’t want it to be Jensen and Misha or myself. I’m sorry I came to you like this but I didn’t know what else to do.” 

Gayle waited until she was sure Allie was finished before she began. 

“First of all, thank you, Allie. There are many people in this world that wouldn’t do what you did to protect the privacy of relative strangers. You are incredibly honorable and have proved so repeatedly in the last month if your tale is to be believed.” Allie looked up at that and nodded understanding the need for caution on Gayle’s part. She would be contacting the authorities to verify Allie’s story, it would only be prudent. 

“Secondly, pending confirmation, I would like your permission to contact Jensen directly with this and offer him the opportunity to come down here and meet with you so you can explain your story to him without the middle man, so to speak.” 

Allie felt a blush creep into her cheeks at the idea of meeting someone she idolized but it quickly washed to a pallor as the impending horror of having to recount such personal details of her life to him occurred to her. Allie felt a little sick at the prospect but she nodded her consent. 

“Now, are you available this afternoon? I will see if I can get Jensen to meet us here around 3 p.m. He’s usually available for afternoon meetings during the hiatus.” 

Again Allie nodded. 

“Good, in the meantime I would like you to stay here in the area, I’ll have one of the boys in security take you out to lunch and you can hang out in the lobby or the local bookstore around the corner to pass the time. Under no circumstances are you to go back to your apartment where this man could potentially assault you, is that alright? I don’t mean to make it sound like an ultimatum but I have been working with Jensen for many years and I know him well enough to know that he would never want someone to be hurt because of him, however indirectly. Certainly not someone who had a hand in keeping him from enduring a massive and potentially career-ending scandal.” 

Allie smiled a bit at this last statement. 

Gayle made a phone call down to the security desk, relaying the information she’d just shared with Allie. Then she stepped around the desk and helped Allie stand as she escorted her from the office back out into the lobby. 

“Allie, I have some phone calls to make, please wait here for your lunch date. I will see you this afternoon at 3. I will have someone in security contact your escort if the time changes.” 

At this Gayle clasped Allie about the shoulders and gave her a little shake making strong eye contact with her the whole time. “I promise you Allie, I’m going to do everything in my power to make this right. You are a remarkable young woman.” 

Allie gave the smaller woman a slight smile in acknowledgement. Gayle rubbed her shoulders quickly and vigorously. Then she stepped back and turned on her heel, rapidly retreating back to her office. 

Allie sat down with a huff on the leather couch in Gayle’s lobby. She felt completely wiped out and it was only 11:30 in the morning. The door opened to reveal one of the two large men who’d come to possibly remove her earlier. He smiled gently at her this time though and offered his hand, “You must be Allie. I’m Steve. You’re to be my lunch date. You like sushi?” 

Allie smiled taking his hand. “Love it.” 

Steve grinned openly now. “Alright let’s head down stairs, if you don’t mind a little walk there’s this great place about five blocks up.” 

Allie stood and followed the large man to the elevator bay. She felt safe for the first time in almost a month as he took a defensive stance at her side. Perhaps this wouldn’t be so bad after all.


	3. Chapter 3

Jensen strode into Gayle’s office with his usual calm, collected demeanor. His eyes betrayed the emotional duress he was feeling though, so he had carefully hidden them behind a pair of Ray Bans. As soon as he closed his agent’s door he pulled the glasses off, revealing his striking green orbs, beset with worry lines around his eyelids. Gayle nodded to acknowledge him and gestured to a chair as she continued a conversation she was having on her office phone. Jensen sat down with a slight huff, his hands restlessly stroking the leather of the chair’s arms. He overheard the tail end of Gayle’s conversation, her familiar stern tone bringing some comfort to his over-stressed mind. 

“…I understand Detective Anderson. I appreciate anything you and your department can do for this young woman…” Gayle locked eyes with Jensen and motioned toward the mini fridge behind her desk, a silent question. Jensen shook his head, denying the offer of refreshment. 

“Well, I know the law has its boundaries but I believe you know the necessity of preventative measures with individuals like this. This young man has already threatened Allie and after conversing with my client I believe he was trespassing on private property repeatedly in the last month. You are a smart man Detective, where do situations like this usually end up?” Gayle’s face turned into a grimace as the man on the other end of the line gave her an answer that obviously displeased her. 

“I want you to know that I am recording this conversation and if any harm comes to either this young woman or my client I will be holding you and your department PERSONALLY liable.” Jensen heard the man on the other end of the phone raise his voice indicating his duress at Gayle’s threat. 

“Yes, well, see that you do. I will be waiting for your call. Good afternoon, Detective.” 

Gayle firmly replaced the phone in its cradle, taking a moment to write down some notes before placing the pen on the desk and folding her hands in her lap, turning her full attention to Jensen. 

“Apologies Jensen, the police department had me on hold for forty five minutes before you came in, I didn’t want to hang up and have to deal with a similar run around again.” 

Jensen waved off Gayle’s apology, happy for the moment he took to compose himself before tackling this conversation. 

“So show me these photos.” He spoke with a rough tone in his voice belying the anger that boiled just below the surface the facade of calm. 

Gayle turned her screen toward Jensen’s seat and began a slide show of Jeremy’s images from the SD Card. Two minutes in Jensen’s eyes had widened and he cleared his throat to indicate he didn’t need to see anymore. 

Gayle turned the screen back to face herself and clicked out of the drive, ejecting the SD Card and placing it on the desk between them. 

Jensen’s right hand scrubbed a path across his mouth and thick reddish beard, migrating up to his forehead before raking tracks through his over-long dirty blonde hair. 

“Shit.” Gayle nodded in agreement. 

He spoke tersely and succinctly. 

“This girl who gave you this, are you sure she had no part in getting the photos to begin with?” 

Gayle raised one eyebrow at Jensen giving him a shrewd glare. “I have spoken with the authorities, her landlord, her boss, and several of her close acquaintances. They have all vouched for her character and the animosity she felt toward her ex-boyfriend’s means of employment. In my estimation she is a genuinely good-hearted person who simply felt the need to protect you and your family from a gross invasion of privacy.” 

Jensen nodded looking out the window as he seemed to be considering Gayle’s statement. 

“This guy..” 

“Jeremy Williams.” Gayle provided helpfully. 

“Jeremy, yeah. Do you have a picture of him?” Gayle turned her screen again and brought up an image search window that displayed a variety of images of the small, mousey photographer in various situations. Most of the pictures were from parties or red carpet events he was attending as a pap. 

“Yeah, that’s him alright. I spotted his telephoto lens sticking out of an oak tree on the estate down the street from mine. I only caught the glare off the lens because of the direction of the sun; heaven knows how many times he’d been up there before I put the fear of God in him.” 

Gayle pursed her lips, “Yes, tell me more about that, you said you caught a man with a camera a week or so ago on the phone. I sense there is something more to that story that you aren’t telling me.” 

Jensen looked a bit sheepish, he’d roughed the kid up a bit, and honestly if there’d been any evidence of the encounter he could have been facing an assault charge which was why he hadn’t mentioned it to Gayle until she called to tell him the story of the SD card and the photos. 

“Yeah I, uh, may have thrown him against the tree and put him in a choke hold.” He scrubbed the back of his neck in embarrassment as Gayle fixed him with a disapproving stare. 

“May have? Jensen you can’t go around assaulting paparazzi! Who do you think you are, Sean Penn? If anyone had seen you we could be facing charges and jail time! You know better!” 

It was a testament to their long relationship that Jensen knew he’d really pissed Gayle off because she actually raised her voice at him. Normally nothing fazed her. 

“I didn’t leave any marks on him! I just wanted to scare him a bit! The little shit was spying on my family. I just wanted to protect them.” Jensen heaved a weary sigh. “I didn’t think.” 

“Precisely. I am glad you showed enough restraint to avoid leaving evidence of the altercation, but going forward you must be doubly careful in every respect. This extends particularly to matters involving Misha, which I think should go without saying.” Jensen dropped his head to hide the flush that assaulted his cheeks, Gayle hadn’t even batted an eye at seeing explicit photographs of Jensen fellating his co-star, but he knew she was surprised to learn of their intimate relationship. Only six people in the whole world knew about them and four of them were actively involved in the relationship. 

Jensen had never imagined when meeting the older man five years ago that their friendship would evolve so quickly into one of the most formative and intimate of Jensen’s life. Somehow that strange little Russian had wormed his way into Jensen’s heart and soul. Even after he and Danneel had gotten married Jensen had found he enjoyed the times when Misha and Vicki visited them better than any other interactions they had with their other friends. 

A line was crossed in Rome last year, Danneel was too pregnant to attend and the relationship between she and Jensen had been strained with all the stress of filming and lack of sex due to third trimester blues. He’d fought with Danneel that night on Skype, she’d ordered him to go blow off some steam. So he’d gone out for a few drinks with Misha and the others. But a few drinks had turned into a full blown drunk quickly and he’d found himself half leaning, half falling into Misha’s lean form in an alleyway between the restaurant and the hotel. 

Their first kiss had been all desperate drunken platitudes. Misha’s mouth had tasted like stale wine and spearmint. His warm breath had sent shivers down Jensen’s spine, even as his arms struggled to push Jensen’s bulkier form away, to give them a minute to process. Jensen had been grateful for the minute, realizing he was about to make a mistake, not because he didn’t want Misha, but because he did. He wanted the puckish imp with the dancing sapphire eyes and plush mouth that spouted his acerbic wit. He wanted him for more than a drunken tryst. 

So they’d gone back to the hotel. Misha had protested Jensen dragging him into his room until he realized that Jensen wasn’t trying to consummate what they’d started in the alley. Then they’d sat up and talked until it was almost time for them to get up for breakfast. They talked about their wives, their lives, and how they felt about each other. They decided they’d talk to the women in their lives about what was happening between them and then they’d explore it, as a group. It was the conversation that changed Jensen’s life, for the better. 

Now, almost two years later, he couldn’t imagine a world where he wasn’t in love with three people instead of one. And he would die for each of them. Or kill. There was nothing Jensen wouldn’t do to protect Misha, Vicki, and Danneel from the vicious jackals of the press and the judgmental eyes of the world. 

But for the intervention of a complete stranger, everything he had could have fallen apart. Jensen owed a lot to this girl, Allie, and he meant to repay his debt.


	4. Chapter 4

The nerves made her skin itch, she felt damp all over, and she was pretty sure that she wouldn’t be able to string two words together, let alone speak articulately about the events of the last few weeks. This was really going to be impossibly embarrassing. Allie was sure of it.  


Allie took some deep breaths, she thought of her self-assured, domme persona, the one she’d used with Jeremy in the bedroom. The one she used to tell off handsy creeps at the bar where she worked. She felt minutely calmer. The elevator doors slid open to reveal the entrance to Gayle’s office and her tenuous restraint gave way to the burgeoning flood of panic that had been building silently in her mind all afternoon.  


Suddenly, she was regretting the raw fish she’d had for lunch because she was almost certain it was going to make a reappearance in the nearest trash bin. Fortunately, she was still being accompanied by Steve, an over-sized sweetheart of a man.  


During lunch they’d gotten to know each other a bit and she’d found out that Steve was a former bodybuilder who’d had aspirations of being a police officer, until he’d found out that LAPD required random drug testing, and his brand of muscle enhancers were definitely not legal. He’d since kicked the habit, but found security gigs in the private sector were more lucrative than the salary the department could afford, not to mention much less hazardous. Allie quickly determined that Steve was a big softie when he got down on one knee to return a little girl’s lost change purse outside the restaurant. Halfway through the meal he’d cracked a one liner from a recent Doctor Who episode and Allie decided to keep him.  


Now he was once again proving how awesome he was by sweeping her to the nearby ladies room entrance, completely bypassing Gayle’s office.  
Allie rushed inside with a muffled, “Thanks.” thrown back over her shoulder. She slammed through the door and ran to the nearest stall, making quick work of her stomach contents as she gripped desperately on the toilet paper dispenser.  


Heaving in calming lungfuls of air, she attempted to settle her still roiling stomach. She had to get it together. Slowly, she stood to her full height, the automatic sensor flushing away the evidence with robotic efficiency. Making her way to the vanity, Allie caught the first glimpse of her pale, haunted expression in the brightly lit mirror. Deathly pallor made her make up stand out too vividly against her skin. 

Rinsing the aftertaste of sushi and stomach acid from her mouth she took a paper towel and ran it under the cold faucet, placing the damp rag against the back of her neck. She’d read somewhere that was supposed to help when you were nauseated.  


Hands shaking, she attempted to correct the raccoonish appearance of her eye liner. As she continued breathing and trying to center herself, she pictured the events of the last few weeks that lead up to the ridiculous situation that was currently her life. Anger surged forward as she remembered just how cruel Jeremy had been when last they met. Allie drew strength from her rage, affirmed that she was making the right decision, the only decision, that would result in the best outcome for both herself and these men whom she didn’t know, but strove to protect.  


Giving the mirror a last cursory glance, she straightened her suit jacket and strode out to meet a man she’d been watching on television just a few hours prior.  


*****  


He was tall. So tall it was ridiculous to know that they referred to him as the “short one” around set. Piercing green eyes she’d always thought had to be enhanced by some photoshop magic in the ads and con pictures stared her down with palpable intensity.  


“You must be Allie.” Jensen spoke with a gruff tone that recalled Dean Winchester, his soft Texan accent melodious despite his rough timber. He held out his hand. A full minute passed before Allie remembered how to speak, as she shuffled forward to grasp his hand in her wet palm.  


“Y-yeah, hi.” Eye contact was out of the question, she planted her gaze a little bit below his scruffy chin and kept it there.  


“Well, it seems to me that I owe you a great big thank you.”  


Shocked, she did chance a glance up into his eyes which were shining with sincerity and a bit of puckish mirth.  


“Seriously? It was nothing. I mean anyone would do the same.” She looked away a flush coloring her cheeks.  


He spoke softly, but his tone brooked no argument, “No. Allie. No they really wouldn’t.” 

He took both her hands in his and waited until she got enough courage to meet his gaze again. 

“In fact,” he stated firmly, giving her a bit of a shake, “as near as I can tell, you saved me and mine from a scandal that might very well have destroyed my family and my career.” 

Looking over at Gayle to confirm, he continued. “And you suffered a lot of emotional duress in the process. All for people who don’t know you from Adam. In my book that makes you exceptional. I plan on making this situation right, by any means in my power. Now, darlin', why don’t you come sit down and talk to me about this crazy douchebag who’s been stalking you?”  


Nodding gratefully, she slid into one of the over-sized leather chairs in front of Gayle’s desk. Her hand were shaking. Gayle slipped a glass of cold water into her palm and she took a grateful sip. “Thanks.” Gayle smiled gently and squeezed her shoulder before rounding the desk and taking her usual seat. Jensen seated himself on the edge of the chair opposite Allie leaning forward. He reached out and gently cupped her chin raising her eyes to meet his own.  


“It’s okay, you can tell me.”  


Allie was shocked by how comforting his gentleness was. Her nerves melted away. 

She took another sip and then began, “He wasn’t always like this, Jeremy I mean. When we first met he was so quirky and funny, not my type at all, but he was persistent. He was a photographer, went to art school and everything. Came into my bar with a friend the first time...Alex I think his name was. More of an acquaintance now that I think about it, I never saw him again after that first time, but Jeremy...He came in every Thursday and Saturday. He would sit at the bar and order cheap beer and show me all the pictures he’d taken that week. He started out doing gigs for fashion mags or newspaper articles, whoever would hire him. He was so proud of his growing portfolio. He didn’t even make a move on me, I’m a bartender, I get hit on a lot. He was just so nice, always staying until I’d closed up and walking me to my car. Just, the perfect gentleman. One day he mentioned he was going to be showing some of his work in a gallery downtown. He asked if I wanted to go, and it was my day off so I said sure. We started dating exclusively shortly after that. I introduced him to my friends, we all hung out. It never occurred to me that I hadn’t ever met any of his people, I mean it’s L.A. people are fickle and I was too busy falling for him to pay attention to any of the warning signs. He told me he got his first gig as a pap about six months after we started dating. The money was insane. I didn’t find out until much later that he’d been doing it off and on for like eight years before we met. I happened to find out he was the one who broke the Brangelina story by accident, I saw his signature on one of the photos in a google search. It was our first knock-down, drag out. I told him I didn’t like the way that people in that job behaved, or the way they exploited other people for money. He told me it was just a job and he wouldn’t bring his work home, and he kept his word, he pretty much kept it to himself. No more sharing his portfolio, he just came home and went to his studio. When the art jobs dried up he began to work exclusively as a pap. But he made an effort to keep his work and personal life separate. He’d come out to eat dinner and interact with our friends but he never talked about his day or what he was doing.”  


Pausing to take another sip, Jensen took the opportunity to ask, “How did you find out about the pictures?”  


“I want to say I’m sorry, because I’m pretty sure the only reason he even got interested in you guys is because I’m such a fan of the show.” Jensen made a dismissive noise and shook his head.  


“This is not your fault, Allie, none of it. Please don’t blame yourself.” She smiled at him, thankfully.  


“I was just trying to find out what he wanted for dinner. I came into his studio and surprised him, I guess, he didn’t have time to hide what was on the screen. It was a picture of Danneel. I freaked out, I clicked through the snaps, not all of them,” she quickly amended when she saw the blush color Jensen’s cheeks. Coughing to clear her throat she continued, “Anyway, I uh yelled at him, demanded he give me the SD card, told him I’d punish him if he didn’t.” It was her turn to blush as she admitted this.  


Jensen cocked an eyebrow at that statement but didn’t ask any questions.  


“He seemed okay with it. But a few days later I came home and he’d tossed the apartment. I changed the locks, but he went completely off the reservation. He showed up a couple weeks later, with a gun. I’m pretty sure he would have used it if the neighbors hadn’t called the cops. That was yesterday... I looked Gayle up on the internet and came down here first thing this morning. I-I didn’t know what else to do. I’m afraid to go home. He will come back. I know he will. I can’t afford to move somewhere else and I’m terrified of what might happen the next time he shows up.”  


Exhausted from telling her tale; Allie put her head in her hands. She felt empty as her final words rang in her ears. An overwhelming wave of despair washed over her and she felt hot tears spilling down her cheeks before she could stop herself. Suddenly, she was moving, her whole body shifted into Jensen’s lap and he closed his warm muscular arms around her.  


“Shhhh, it’s going to be okay darlin’. You’re not alone in this anymore. I promise, he is never going to get to you.” She sobbed even harder at these kind words. He stroked her back until she quieted, pulling air in, in little hiccups. Gayle held out a handkerchief to her as she lifted her head from his shoulder. She hastily tried to tidy her make-up. Awkwardly she sat up on Jensen’s knee, trying to extricate herself from his embrace, but he seemed unfazed. He kept one hand on her back and the other on her knee as she shifted her weight to get more comfortable.  


“I’m sorry, I don’t usually break down like that, in front of strangers,” she snuffled. “Especially not famous ones.” Jensen threw his head back and laughed. Allie took the opportunity to stand and reseat herself in her chair.  


“So, what am I going to do?” She tried to sound more composed than she felt.  


Gayle raised an eyebrow at Jensen, “Yes, Jensen, what are we going to do about Allie? I have some suggestions but I’m curious as to what you’re thinking.”  


Jensen mused for a moment, considering the angles that Allie herself had already gone over a million times. “I could help you move into another apartment, somewhere outside the Valley, maybe a gated community.” 

“By ‘help’ you mean…” Jensen smirked at Allie’s deliberate obtuseness. “I mean I would pay for you to have a new apartment.”  


Shaking her head, she furrowed her brow with determination. “Absolutely not, I admit I came here, partially, hoping for some kind of assistance like that...but I'm not a charity case, I refuse to take you to the cleaners because of my problems. It wouldn't be right.”  


Chuckling Jensen leaned back in the chair. “You remind me of my wife, Allie, stubborn and willful in the face of any adversity.”  


“I’ll take that as a compliment.”  


“You should. But if you won’t let me help you move out of your situation, I can offer to hire some 24-hour security guards to stake out your place, and follow you to work.”  


“How is that not taking your money?”  


“It’s not as expensive as a new apartment.” Jensen opened his hands in a gesture attempting to placate Allie.  


“It easily could be, since we both have no idea how long this is going to go on. And I’m not too keen on being monitored 24-7 whether it’s for my safety or not. I don’t want to live like a criminal, I’ve done nothing wrong.”  


Concern creased Jensen’s brow. “I hadn’t thought about it that way. Hmm, I don’t suppose we could hire someone to off Jeremy?” Though she knew he was kidding, Allie was a bit taken aback, Jensen however, missed the horror-struck look on her face because he was winking at Gayle who gave him a stone face in return.  


The only thing on Gayle’s face that moved as she responded were her lips, which were pursed in a look that was a perfect mix of contempt and perturbation. It was obvious that the woman had spent many hours corralling ornery young men who found mirth in the most inopportune of places.  


“I thought we were trying to be productive about brainstorming ideas to help Allie, Jensen. We are not in a mafia film, after all. No one is getting ‘whacked’.”  


Stifling a smirk Jensen cleared his throat. “Sure. Sorry, just a thought.”  


Allie sighed. Hopelessness had begun to swallow her up inside. There really wasn’t a solution to this problem that didn’t include her uprooting her entire life.  


Jensen reached out and gave her hand a reassuring squeeze. “We’ll think of something kiddo. In the meantime, I suggest you come to dinner with me and the Mrs. We can talk more there.”  
Standing he offered his hand to help Allie out of her chair.  


“Gayle, I’ll keep you apprised of our conversation, in the meantime would you please book Ms. Warner a room at the four seasons under my account.”  


“Jensen, I…” Allie began to protest. He raised his hand in a shushing gesture. 

“It’s just for tonight, and you need some place to feel safe so you can get a goodnight’s rest.”  


Her shoulders drooped in defeat. She was exhausted and it would be nice to have a hot shower and a soft bed where she didn’t have to worry about anything for a while. 

“Great. I’ll have Steve escort you to the hotel, do you have clothes for dinner at a 5 star?” She shook her head, most of her wardrobe consisted of blue jeans and ratty old t-shirts, she was currently wearing the nicest clothes she owned.  


“OK I’ll send up Dani’s stylist with some options for dinnerware, I’ll pick you up at the hotel around 7? Sound good?”  


Allie nodded, “Thank you, really. For everything.”  


Jensen smiled his superstar grin flashing his perfect, pearly whites. “It’s going to be OK. We’ll take care of you, it’s the least we could do, since you took such good care of us.”  


He walked her down to the lobby, where Steve was waiting to escort her to a private car that had been pulled around. A sense of vertigo slammed down on her as she realized what a whirlwind her life had become in less that 24 hours. Private cars, high-end hotels, gourmet restaurants, she felt like a rock star. It all made her feel light-headed. She stumbled as she descended the steps in front of the office building. Jensen reached out to grab her arm to keep her from falling and she smiled up at him gratefully.  


“You Ok?” Concern laced his voice as his eyes examined her face looking for signs of distress.  


“Just...it’s a little bit much, everything is happening so fast. You’re so amazingly kind to do all of this for me, I don’t know how I can ever thank you.”  


Jensen smiled. “No thanks necessary. You need help, and I am happy to give it. Go on lil’ girl, go to the hotel and get some rest. I’ll see you for dinner.” He released her arm, which she just realized he’d been holding the whole time. Steve took over and led her to the waiting car.  


Comfortably settled in the leather interior, Allie let her mind wander as the cars and buildings whipped past outside the window. She dozed feeling safe for the first time in more than a month.


	5. Chapter 5

Jeremy tossed and turned, the backseat of his car was lumpy and uncomfortable. Plus, the car smelled like something died in it, probably because of all the old fast food packaging that littered the floorboards. He gave up trying to sleep and turned on the car to charge his phone and camera batteries. It was early evening, prime time for paparazzi to get geared up for the night’s festivities.  


LA’s perpetual party began at sundown. For a photog, it was like being a kid in a candy store. Every chic restaurant was packed to the gills with beautiful people waiting to be snapped in some compromising position. After dinner, most of them moved to the clubs, where even more shenanigans could be recorded. Mostly it was boring watching other people get drunk and dance like fools to the throbbing club beats, but occasionally you got to snap a new relationship being born, or a hookup between married celebs, or even a fist fight over some perceived slight. That was pay day. He scrolled through his phone, surfing a couple of tabloid websites and some forums that paps used to communicate tips. Apparently some young rap stars were out on the town and living large tonight, that was a good target, somebody was bound to get into an altercation or hit on the wrong girl.  


He paused his scroll as a familiar name came up. Jensen Ackles and his wife were dining out tonight, with an unknown friend at Wolvesmouth At the Wolvesden, downtown. He really should leave it alone, but his curiosity got the best of him. Stepping out of the car, he popped the trunk and pulled some clean and relatively unwrinkled clothes out of his duffle bag. Changing quickly in the dark alley where his car was parked, he grabbed his camera bag from the backseat.  


Driving in LA was always challenging, it was one of the worst aspects of being a resident, but Jeremy considered it a matter of pride that he rarely sat in traffic jams, he maneuvered in and out of turn lanes, took side streets, and generally drove as aggressively as possible to get to his destination. He arrived in time to park and scope out the block surrounding the restaurant for other paps. Not a soul was in view. Apparently a C-List star of a long running sci-fi show wasn’t a big draw on this night.  


Between two parked cars with a good view of the entrance to the restaurant Jeremy set up his gear. He focused his lens meticulously and waited. Forty minutes later, he was rewarded for his patience. The doors were held open by staff members as Jensen’s bodyguards came out first. Two tall, muscular bald guys, did a survey of the street, but did not spot Jeremy hidden in the shadows of the hulking SUV’s. They made an all clear hand signal and then Jensen and his wife appeared. He began to snap photos, the rapid click of the shutter echoing like gunfire in the silent street.  


Sound waves ricochet off parked cars, eventually reaching the vigilant ears of the bodyguards. They look directly at him, still not seeing his crouched form in the shadows. They start to run in his direction but not before his camera lens, faster than his own eyes captures the image of the mysterious young woman who the famous couple was dining with this evening. Allie. HIS Allie. Shocked by what he saw the camera dropped from his hand. He cursed as he heard the telltale tinkling of broken glass. Heavy footfalls, the precursor to discovery, thudded toward him on the asphalt. He scooped up his damaged equipment and keeping to a low crouch ran down the sidewalk, darting into a small gap between two buildings.  


Unable to stop himself from the childhood hiding reflex; he closed his eyes. He only heard the confused grunts and panting breaths of the bodyguards as they shuffled past. But pass they did. And they didn’t see him cowering in the darkness like a scared rat.  


He slipped further down the alley, passing by moldering leaves and rotting dumpsters until he came out in a parking lot behind one of the buildings. Checking that the coast was clear he half-ran, half-walked a circuitous route back to his car. As he settled into the driver’s seat relief washed over him. A gale force exhale passed his lips and he began to chuckle, then laugh. His giggles came out high pitched and tinged with madness, which only made him laugh harder, until he was hyperventilating from the hysterics. 

Imagine! Allie, with Jensen freaking Ackles! He had to give her credit, the little whore moved fast. Probably beat him to the punch, blackmailing the celeb so she wouldn’t sell his pictures to the tabloids. 

“MY GODDAMNED PICTURES!” 

Beating his fists on the steering wheel in time to the syllables he repeated the phrase.  


Glancing over to the passenger seat prompted a grimace. Now, he had no way to take more photos, his camera lens was cracked, and a new one would run him almost the price of the vehicle he was sitting in. The only way to get that kind of money was to take what was rightfully his from Allie. 

How to find her? She hadn’t been back to the apartment, he’d checked last night. She was in contact with the Ackles’ but none of his representatives would give Jeremy the time of day. Frustrated and unsure what to do next he began scrolling through the photos he took tonight.  


No clues presented themselves on either of the Ackles or Allie, on his second scroll through he noticed the window was down on private car they’d hired. He zoomed in on the face of the driver, the high resolution image worth every penny he paid for the camera because, he recognized the driver. Jose Riveria. He was one of the paps’ favorite informants, always ready to drop a tip or a location for the right price. 

Jeremy had him on speed dial.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it's been so long, but here's a monster chapter as recompense. All the mistakes are mine, un-beta'd as always.

Jensen and his wife whispered quietly across from her in the car. She felt like a third wheel. Attempting to ignore their intimacy she tried to recall all the courses from the amazing meal they’d just finished. 

The restaurant was a tiny loft with only one long table and a huge open-air kitchen attached. Jensen brought wine from his private stores, since they didn’t offer bottles in-house to save space. The head chef greeted them and made the evening fun and adventurous, daring them to guess ingredients and telling stories about the history of the dishes they were consuming. It was incredible. The best meal she’d ever had, by far. Then, as they were leaving Steve and Clif, Jensen’s bodyguard, had heard a papparazo clicking away with their camera. They couldn’t find the culprit, despite a thorough search of the entire street and block around the restaurant. She didn’t know if it had been Jeremy for sure, but a cold chill worked its way up her spine as she contemplated what it might mean if it had been. 

The car lurched to a stop, they’d made it back to her hotel in almost no time. Jose, the driver, opened the door for her and helped her out of the car. Steve followed with Jensen close behind. “Thank you for an incredible evening, Jensen. I really don’t feel like I deserve it. But it was wonderful nonetheless.” 

Jensen smiled, and reached out to grasp her upper arms, gently stroking up and down as if he were trying to keep her warm. “Allie, you are gonna have to put up with my sense of hospitality for a while, it’s best you just accept that I’m gonna take you places and buy you stuff. Chalk it up to being raised proper by my mama.”

Allie returned his smile, “I’m grateful. I wish we had a better plan than keep me locked away in the tallest tower in the land until this blows over, though.”

A loud guffaw escaped Jensen’s scruffy throat, making him toss his head back to let it escape. “Well, princess, it seems to me that you could use a little reprieve from all the crazy. Why don’t you look at it like a long overdue vacation?”

“Never been much for vacations. But I am glad I get to sleep safe tonight.” Jensen reached out to tuck a stray lock of hair behind her ear. “That is all the thanks I need for putting you up. Get some rest, we’ll grab brunch tomorrow and talk about the long-term game plan, okay?”

Allie nodded. Jensen gave her arm an affectionate squeeze then turned on his heel to climb back into the limo. “Goodnight!” She called after him.

He looked back over his shoulder and gave her a friendly wave, she heard Danneel call out a muffled, “Sleep tight, don’t let the bodyguard bite!” Jensen’s laughter spilled out as the door closed. The car pulled away and she was left standing in the warm night air with Steve waiting expectantly to escort her up to the suite. 

Allie let him lead the way. He pushed the button for her floor then stepped back behind her to keep an eye on anyone who might enter or exit the elevator while they were occupying it.

“You OK?” He asked gently.

“Not sure, honestly. It’s been a strange year, especially the last few months. And this last 48 hours….” She opened her palms to indicate her inability to process with words.

Steve nodded understandingly. “Sometimes, when things get to be too much for me, I like to get a really great work-out in, sweat it all out, you know?” 

Nodding, Allie tried to remember the last time she’d gone to the gym, it had been before Jeremy moved out. 

“That actually sounds like an amazing idea. But I don’t have any workout clothes.” 

“That’s why I have this.” Pulling an American Express Corporate card out of his wallet he flashed her a big grin. 

“You don’t have to…” Allie started. 

“Part of the job description is making sure you are comfortable and have everything you need. Everything on this card is a business expense that gets itemized to my clients. Jensen said to take care of you. That’s what I’m gonna do.” 

Allie sighed. Both Jensen and Steve were very bull-headed. It was adorably annoying. 

“OK, but where do we go shopping at this hour.” 

“Oh, sweetie, this is the Four Seasons. Shopping comes to you.” 

Shortly after they arrived in the suite, a knock at the door revealed a personal shopper with a rack of fitness clothes and shoes. Allie chose some Nike yoga pants and a sports bra with matching runner cami in black and pink. The shoes were New Balance, her favorite brand. 

A quick change in the en suite bathroom and she was headed down to the gym. Steve followed her, picking up a magazine in the lobby general store, along with a bottle of water, and a Snickers. 

Allie raised an eyebrow. “Really? You’re gonna eat that while I’m running?” 

Grinning he opened the candy bar and took a monstrous bite. 

“Yup.” 

Laughing they walked the long corridor to the entrance to the on-site gym. Palatial was an understatement, the fitness room was meticulously clean with top-of-the-line machines in sleek, perfectly-spaced, rows. In an adjacent room was an Olympic-size pool and heated spa complete with a steam room, Jacuzzi tub, and masseuse. 

Allie stood dumbstruck for a moment before selecting a treadmill that didn’t have too many weird buttons and setting it for a light jogging pace. Her brown hair began to bounce in time to the rhythm of her feet slamming on the treadmill deck. The gym had a standard piped in electro-pop soundtrack on the overhead, she wished desperately for her Ipod, but made do. Before long she felt herself zoning in on that particular zen sensation that comes with doing a repetitive task, her mind wandered as her body went through the motions. She upped the speed to a full run drawing from her own frustration and anger to fuel her rapid pace. If only she could actually out-run her problems. Her eyes had a thousand-mile stare looking into the wall of mirrors that reflected her running form. Behind her was a bank of floor-to-ceiling windows that separated the gym from the outside hallway. 

She imagined Jeremy standing there staring at her, as he had last night, with a crazed look of obsession. Mania had afflicted every aspect of his appearance, so much so that he no longer resembled anything of the man she had once known and loved. A warm gush shocked her back to the present moment. Tears,hot and stinging, painted her sweat-stained face. She jumped off the treadmill before she fell, her legs quickly giving out underneath her as sobs began to wrack her form. Blinded by the flood and gasping for illusive breaths, she began to shake so hard she was certain to fall apart. Strong arms lifted her, pulling her close, absorbing the shocks of her hiccuping breath and trembling body. Steve. 

“Now, now. Shhhh. Shhhhh, Allie. I got you. I got you, girl.” 

Slowly, she calmed down. Sobs quieting to whimpers, then silence. 

“I want to go home,” she whispered. 

“I know, but that’s not a safe space for you, right now.” Allie nodded. She knew this. She just felt completely overwhelmed. 

“I need to sleep. I’m just exhausted.” Steve’s head nodded assent against the top of her own. 

Holding her with one strong arm he reached over and turned off the treadmill. Then he shifted her weight and carried her out of the gym toward the elevators. A testament to her mental state, Allie didn’t even think to complain, she just tucked her face in Steve’s neck and let him take her to her room. 

Hazy recollections of her own father carrying her in a similar way when she was young floated through her mind. She felt her weight shift again as Steve fumbled through his pocket for the key card. She heard the comforting beep as the lock disengaged and then they were inside. 

She landed on the floor hard, crying out in shock as a jarring motion propped her up against the corner between the door and the wall and Steve’s back pinned her there. 

“What the hell, Steve?” Allie was a bit hurt by the abrupt drop, after all the concerned care Steve had been giving her until they reached the suite. 

Steve grunted a low, barking reply, “Quiet girl, he might still be here.” 

Allie froze. Any anger she felt toward Steve was rapidly replaced by a sense of dread as she processed what his words actually meant. Steve had drawn his gun, she could see the empty holster on his left hip, that was about all she could see around his massive frame. He seemed to be debating his next move. 

Using one hand to reach behind himself, he gently grabbed her arm and tugged her in a side step toward the en suite restroom. She still couldn’t see much, but as the shuffled she looked down and saw feathers strewn across the rich carpeting under her feet. When they reach the doorway, Steve flicked the light switch. The harsh fluorescent glow made the bathroom appear a stark contrast to the dimly lit suite. 

It was pristine, with carrara marble flooring and and glimmering fixtures. The shower curtain had been torn from its rod, it hung limply in the bathtub. The towels were nowhere to be found so the racks hung empty above the toilet and on the far wall. Steve pointed his gun around all four corners of the room, pulled Allie in behind him and quickly pivoted to shut the door closing off the access to the suite proper. He locked the door then ran to the tub to lift the shower curtain, assuring himself there were no dangerous intruders hiding in its folds. 

Once he was sure the room was secure he fixed his steely glare on Allie. 

“You have your phone?” Allie nodded, catching a glimpse of her ashen face in the bathroom mirror as she did so. 

“Call the police tell them where we are, and that we suspect a dangerous individual is in the hotel, give them Jeremy’s description.” She nodded. 

“Then call the front desk and tell them there’s been a break-in and that they need to alert hotel security, again, give them Jeremy’s description.” 

“OK, I’m about to go out and secure the room, lock the door behind me, and get in the bathtub, lay as flat as you can, then make your phone calls. Do NOT open this door for anyone but me, if you hear gunfire you stay down, and if I don’t come for you, wait for the police. You understand?” Allie was too shocked to argue, and she didn’t want to think about what it would mean if Steve didn’t come back for her. 

“Lastly,” he pulled her chin up to stare into his eyes, “If he tries to break the door down and comes for you, you grab the lid off the toilet seat and you stand behind the door. When it swings open you bash him as hard as you can on the head, and you run as fast as your legs will carry you. Out the door to the right, stairwell, not elevator, don’t stop until you hit the lobby or find an officer.” If possible Allie’s eyes widened even further in terror at what he was telling her. 

“You got it?” She nodded for the third time. “Say yes, Allie. Make me believe you’re gonna be OK.” 

Her throat clicked as she swallowed and her voice came out strained and harsh. “Yeah, yes. I got it Steve. Be careful.” She hugged him then. 

Steve glanced once back over his shoulder before opening and closing the door in rapid succession. Allie clicked the lock and ran to the bathtub as Steve had commanded. 

She listened with panicky breaths ringing in her ears for any sounds of a struggle. When no shots rang out or sounds of fighting occurred she took a deep breath and made her phone calls. 

++++++++ 

Steve turned the corner into the room quickly casing and assessing, he lifted the linens peering under each of the double beds, he moved the black-out curtains and checked the closets. He checked the balcony and the wet bar. The room was about 1000 sq feet, but there weren’t really many places to hide. It was pretty obvious that Jeremy had come and gone, but he wanted to have time to check things out before the police arrived, and before he let Allie see the carnage her insane ex, had wrought. 

“What a fucking mess.” He grumbled to himself. The beds were slit up the middle, the memory foam mattresses were torn apart in chunks, each of the down pillows had been slit and emptied all over the floor. All of the glassware from the in room bar was dashed on the tile in piles of shards that glinted like diamonds from across the room. The mirrors were broken, as well as three of the five floor lamps, the lounge area had a couch that had been completely disassembled by the same knife that murdered the bedding. The bastard had even destroyed the cocktail dress Allie had worn to dinner tonight, an adorable Calvin Klein ready wear that would not be cheap to replace. He guesstimated the damages around $10-$15 grand. He reached into the inside pocket of his jacket, he felt Allie’s clutch purse there, it had her ID, money and all of her credit cards as well as her car keys. At least that was safe. 

He sighed, time to bite the bullet and call the bossman. He glanced at this watch. 11:30 p.m. 

“I really hope they don't have to wake up to this.” He punched the auto-dial and the phone began to ring. Two rings...three… 

“What’s wrong?” Jensen’s gruff tone came urgently over the line. 

“Mr. Ackles, I, unfortunately, have to apprise you of the situation we’re being faced with…” 

“Is Allie alright?” Jensen demanded, panic making his voice skip into a slightly higher octave. 

“She is safe. However, it appears her stalker is far more resourceful than we’ve given him credit for.” 

“Shit.” Jensen sighed. Steve could almost picture him sitting down to wait to hear the bad news, now that he was sure the girl wasn’t injured. 

“It’s bad sir, he tossed the room, damages above and beyond 10G’s. She can’t stay here, and I’m not sure where to take her at this time of night, the police are on the way, I want to know how much we should tell them and how much we should keep between ourselves.” 

“You bring her here, when she’s done with the police. I’m not having this happen again. I’d love to see him try to get to her on my private property. Give me a reason to show off my gun collection.” Jensen’s voice shook with wrath, Steve, who regularly hung out with lots of scary dudes, was taken aback by the force of the tone. He definitely didn’t want to make Mr. Ackles mad. 

“Tell them everything except the details of what’s on the drive he’s looking for. That’s not their business. Make sure they issue an arrest warrant. He’s damaged property now, as well as aggressively stalked Allie. They have to be able to hold him on that, for a little while, at least.” 

Steve nodded. “OK, sir. I’ll text when we’re done with the law.” 

Standing up he made his way over the bathroom. Knocking lightly,he gently spoke against the door, “It’s OK Allie, you can come out now.” 

He heard her get out of the tub. _Good girl,_ he thought. The latch clicked open and the fluorescent light blinded him temporarily. 

“Is he gone?” She sounded so tired. He was sick to know that her evening was just beginning. 

“Yeah, but he left a pretty big mess behind.” 

“That sounds like Jeremy.” Sighing, she pushed past Steve’s hulking frame and wandered out to witness the carnage first hand. 

“Jesus.” The curse whispered like a benediction across her lips. Maybe it was closer to a prayer. She’d never been much for religion but witnessing this kind of crazy makes one re-examine their priorities a bit. 

“He’s completely unhinged, isn’t he.” Allie didn’t have to turn around to hear Steve’s scoffing assent. 

“What am I going to do?” She ran her hands nervously through her hair, feeling completely untethered. 

“Jensen wants you at his home, when we finish with the police. It will be safe there. He has guards, cameras, and a full time security force. Not to mention a panic room and a predilection for collecting guns as most Texans do.” A smile surprised its way across her lips. Humor had seemed so far away a moment ago and Steve had managed to bring it back into her grasp. She loved him for that. 

“Thanks, Steve. I don’t know what I would do without you.” 

“Well, if I have my druthers, you will never get to find out.” Surprised she turned to look at him, earnestness blazed from his steel blue eyes. He was mighty and fierce this new friend of hers. Bravery began to blossom in her chest when she looked at him. Her protector. He would keep her safe. Jeremy didn’t have anything like Steve on his side. And now Jensen was inviting her into his home? No, everything was going to be alright. No amount of insanity could stand against these powerful allies she’d made. The darkness and fear burned away and Allie started to feel more like herself again. When hotel security and the police arrived, she greeted them with a smile, and handled the interviews with aplomb. 

++++++++ 

At three o’clock in the morning, they pulled into the driveway of the gated mansion in Beverly HIlls. He held up his ID badge for the night guard and entered a seven digit pass code to get into the gate and another to park in the garage. Allie was weaving on her tired feet as Steve escorted her into the house. She was too exhausted to marvel at any of the sumptuous luxury of a multi-million dollar home. Jensen was waiting for them in a robe and slippers in the foyer. 

“Welcome to my humble abode, beautiful.” He wrapped his arms around Allie who, for once, completely forgot to be stunned by his very presence. Instead, sinking into his warm chest and nearly nodding off. 

“Come on, darlin’. Let’s get you to bed.” He kept one arm slung around her shoulder as he lead her deep into the house. A sumptuous guest bedroom in the middle of the west wing of the house was perfectly appointed for her every need. She’d explore it all in the morning. All she saw was the bed, stumbling six feet into the room, she face-planted into its soft warmth. Steve gently slid her shoes off her feet and pulled the half of the duvet cover he could loosen over her prone form. 

“Goodnight Allie. I’ll be here when you wake up.” Allie smiled as she drifted off into a dreamless sleep. 

“She’s a tough little cookie.” Steve whispered to Jensen after they shut off the light and closed the door on the sleeping girl. 

“She’ll fit in just fine around here then.” Steve nodded. Then he pulled a chair out from a desk in the hallway. 

“I’ll be here if you need me, sir.” Jensen smirked. “You’re in my home, man. No need for formalities. Call me Jensen. Or Jay if you like.” 

Steve rubbed the back of his neck in embarrassment. “I’m afraid Mr. Ackles is probably all the informal I have in me, si- uh, Mr. Ackles.” 

“We’ll work on it then. See you in the morning, Steve?” 

“In the morning, sir….Damn.” Jensen chuckled as he made his way down the long corridor to his own chambers. 

+++++++++ 

“They make it here, OK?” Danneel whispered. 

“Yup all settled in. I think Allie is gonna be family in no time. She’s a little firecracker, just like someone else I know.” Dropping his robe on the floor next to his slippers, Jensen slid into the bed next to Dani. 

“Oooh, you’re chilly. Come here, big boy and warm up.” Jensen smirked to himself, he loved his randy little wife. 

A muffled voice scolded them from the far side of the bed. “You know, some of us like to sleep when it’s dark outside.” 

Jensen and Danneel collapsed into giggles, prompting Misha to throw two rather-heavy pillows at them. 

Properly chastened, they settled down and soon fell fast asleep snuggled together for warmth.


End file.
